This invention relates to animal tags used to provide identification and/or insecticide protection to animals, particularly cattle, but also other domestic animals or wild life. In particular, the present invention relates to a two-component animal tag having a locking insert. The invention is particularly useful in connection with an animal tag which contains a pest-controlling active ingredient in order to protect the animal from the attack of insects and other ectoparasites.
Animal tags are commonly used to identify specific animals in a herd or group in order to maintain records for breeding purposes, milk records, feeding plans, wool production and the like. Recently, similar tags which contain an insecticide chemical have been used to protect the animal from pests such as horn flies, face flies, Gulf Coast ticks, spinose ear ticks, stable flies, houseflies, and lice. Such insecticide tags may bear identification information as well, or may be applied solely for pest control.
The ear of the animal has been found to be a particularly satisfactory place to locate an identification or insecticide tag. For identification purposes, this location provides high visibiltiy. For insecticide purposes, since the animal naturally tends to rub its head on its body, this action distributes the insecticide.
It is also desirable that such tags be sufficiently flexible so as not to snag on objects such as brush, fences, trees or the like.
In recent years, two-component animal tags have become popular. Such tags include a male portion which is passed through the ear of the animal and mated with the female portion. In most instances, the tag body component (the information-carrying portion or insecticide-impregnated portion) is associated with the female portion of the tag. Such tags are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,260,007 to Hayes and in commonly assigned copending application Ser. No. 435,704, filed Oct. 21, 1982, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Insecticide ear tags are made of a thermoplastic material such as flexible polyvinyl chloride, which contains a pest-controlling active ingredient. The active ingredient gradually and continually migrates to the surface of the tag body and is rubbed onto the hair of the animal. The active ingredient is one which kills, repels, regulates growth, sterilizes, or by any other way reduces the harmful effects of ectoparasites, including insects, ticks, and other lower forms of life which attack the animal.
A problem that is especially serious with the chemically impregnated plastic ear tags is that the impregnated plastic part tends to be quite soft. Because of this softness, the male portion of the tag can pull out of the female portion after the tag has been installed, so that the tag is lost.
It is, accordingly, a purpose of this invention to provide a locking insert which can be used to resist separation of the male and female components of a two-component animal tag. A further object of the present invention is to provide such an insert which can be easily and inexpensively manufactured, and can be used in conjunction with existing ear tag bodies.